Sources: Lakers out of Chris Paul talks

I wonder this is all about. I thought they Lakers were trying to counter the 'big three' in Miami. Are they thinking that getting Dwight Howard will be enough? I hear that they have traded Lamar Odom to the Dallas Mavericks. Did the trade go through with Pau Gasol or not? Either way, I am not sure I will know where any of my favorite players are until opening day.

The Los Angeles Lakers abruptly withdrew from the Chris Paul sweepstakes Saturday night after more than 24 hours of unsuccessful attempts to restructure a three-team deal with the New Orleans Hornets and Houston Rockets that would meet with the approval of NBA commissioner David Stern, according to sources close to the process.

The Lakers informed the league-owned Hornets and the Rockets they were pulling out of the stonewalled deal, sources said, and instead trading Lamar Odom to the Dallas Mavericks. Dallas is able to accommodate Odom's $8.9 million salary without surrendering any prized assets thanks to a new trade exception created through the Mavericks' three-team deal with New York and Washington earlier Saturday that landed Tyson Chandler with the Knicks.

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